Paul Laux Photography, Writing, and Radio

It’s late in the evening now, the weight of the day still squarely on your chest. And everything you did that day is running through your head.

What you weren’t able to do.

What you were, you didn’t do right.

What you forgot about.

What you just didn’t have the mental capacity to handle.

You finally sit down at the end of the day, paralyzed and not able to do much of anything, especially something that you enjoy, like a hobby. All you’re trying to do is keep it together and reset for the next day.

No one likes to talk about it, but for many of us, this is our daily life. Getting by, and putting up a happy facade to make it seem like you’re doing well.

The thing is, life may very well going just fine for you. You have a great job, bills are paid. Food is on the table. A great family sitting around you. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get caught up in the mental bog that is life. And that doesn’t mean you won’t have days where you feel like you’re just getting by.

And the thing is, you’re not alone.

Very often, I find even myself struggling with the day. Not finding enough time to even make my house something that isn’t embarrassing. I stew until one, two in the morning thinking about what I need to do, and what I could have done better. It’s a pattern that never seems to end. And especially now in the world, thinking about all that is going wrong, and how I feel helpless to stop any of it.

It is overwhelming. But I remind myself that I am not alone in the struggle, and neither are you.

Life is hard, life is difficult, and that is for everyone.

If you’re not able to even get up to do the most basic tasks, only having the energy to survive. Or if your temper has been touchy with the world around you. Or if you just can barely keep your eyes open during the day. There is nothing wrong with you, and you’re doing the best you can. It doesn’t mean you’re a failure, or that you are broken. You’re just a person trying to navigate the ever-changing and seemingly ever-worsening minefield that is your day.

The fight will go on, you will make it, and there will always be someone there to fight next to you – no matter how improbable your chances at victory may seem.

At the end of the day, when all seems lost, all seems defeated. Know that you are the best version of yourself and that sometimes just getting by is the biggest win after all.

You will have your victory, you will have your success. And even when it may seem like all hope is lost, you still have your strength – even if it’s a little harder to find.